The invention relates to a magnetic recording apparatus which can selectively record input information signals of a plurality of signal formats.
A video tape recorder (abbreviated to a VTR) of the rotary head helical scan type as a home-use magnetic recording and reproducing apparatus has been considered so far on the assumption of the NTSC system (PAL, SECAM systems in Europe) as a standard television signal format. In recent years, however, the realization of practical use of the EDTV (Extended Definition TV) system as an improved type of the standard television signal format is being developed and the development and the realization of practical use of the HDTV (High Definition TV) system as a high definition (also referred to as a high precision) television system of a higher quality are also being developed. The techniques regarding the HDTV system and HDTV-VTR have been disclosed in "The Special Edition, Television Annual Report, 4-2, HDTV (High Vision)", the magazine of The Institute of Television Engineers of Japan, Vol. 42, No. 7 (1988), pages 655-657, and in "The Special Edition, Television Annual Report, 4, Image Information Recording", the magazine of the Institute of Television Engineers of Japan, Vol. 44, No. 7 (1990), pages 840-846. The HDTV-VTRs of various kinds of systems such as an analog recording system, a digital recording system, and the like have been introduced in the above literatures. All of the above various kinds of HD (High Definition) VTRs are the magnetic recording and reproducing apparatuses which are specially used only for a high definition television signal.
That is, in the above conventional VTRs, nothing is considered with respect to the recording and reproduction of signals other than the high definition television signal. Particularly, those VTRs don't have the conventional standard television signal recording function which is strongly demanded in the home-use VTR.
Further, the realization of practical use of the EDTV system (the realization of a wide screen is also examined) as an improved type of the standard television system is also being developed at present. It is inconvenient to provide a VTR corresponding to each of the television systems as a home-use VTR in terms of both costs and space.